U.S. stock futures were mixed on Thursday morning, following Wednesday’s largely lower close as only tech stocks ended on a positive note.
Following the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep the interest rates steady at 3.50%-3.75%, Jerome Powell said during his speech that he plans to remain on the Board of Governors, despite his term ending on May 15.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is reportedly scheduled to review potential military strategies from CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper for Iran on Thursday, signaling a possible return to significant combat operations, as per Axios. The U.S. is reportedly considering a “short and powerful” strike campaign on Iran targeting infrastructure to break the stalemate in negotiations and push Tehran back to the nuclear bargaining table.
The 10-year Treasury bond yielded 4.41%, and the two-year bond was at 3.91%. The CME Group’s FedWatch tool‘s projections show markets pricing a 98.8% likelihood of the Federal Reserve leaving the current interest rates unchanged during June’s meeting.
| Index | Performance (+/-) |
| Dow Jones | -0.42% |
| S&P 500 | -0.01% |
| Nasdaq 100 | 0.22% |
| Russell 2000 | -0.03% |
The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (NYSE:SPY) and Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (NASDAQ:QQQ), which track the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100, respectively, were mixed in premarket on Thursday. The SPY was down 0.021% at $711.43, while the QQQ advanced 0.13% to $662.43.
Stocks In Focus
Amazon.com
- Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) was up 1.63% after reporting upbeat financial results for the first quarter after the market closed on Wednesday. It said that it expects second-quarter revenue to be between $194 billion and $199 billion, versus estimates of $188.87 billion.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that AMZN maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a strong growth ranking.
Alphabet
- Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) jumped 5.96% after reporting better-than-expected first-quarter financial results and raising its quarterly dividend.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that GOOG maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid quality score.
Microsoft
- Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) was 1.85% lower despite beating estimates; however, it sharply raised its capital spending outlook to nearly $190 billion for 2026.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that MSFT maintains a strong price trend in the short and medium terms but a weak trend in the long term, with a poor value score.
Meta Platforms
- Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ:META) was down 2.04% despite a double beat as it anticipates full-year capital expenditures of $125 billion to $145 billion, up from prior guidance of $115 billion to $135 billion.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that META maintains a strong price trend in the short and medium terms but a weak trend in the long term, with a solid quality score.
Apple
- Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was 0.37% higher as analysts expect it to report earnings of $1.95 per share on revenue of $109.66 billion, after the closing bell.
- Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that AAPL maintains a strong price trend in the short, medium, and long terms, with a solid growth score.
Cues From Last Session
Consumer staples, real estate, and energy shares led the S&P 500’s majority gainers on Tuesday, while information technology and materials sectors finished in the red.
| Index | Performance (+/-) | Value |
| Dow Jones | -0.57% | 48,861.81 |
| S&P 500 | -0.040% | 7,135.95 |
| Nasdaq Composite | 0.038% | 24,673.24 |
| Russell 2000 | -0.60% | 2,739.47 |
Insights From Analysts
BlackRock anticipates that the U.S. economy will face persistent inflation, noting that “inflation pressures predate the Middle East supply shock.”
Structural issues like an aging population, an artificial intelligence-driven capital expenditure boom, and immigration curbs mean that “higher yields are here to stay.”
Despite these macroeconomic headwinds, BlackRock remains optimistic about the U.S. stock market, maintaining an “overweight” position in U.S. equities. They strongly prefer stocks over bonds because long-term government bonds are “no longer effective diversifiers against equity declines.”
A major driver for this equity optimism is the rapid buildout of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. BlackRock observes that previous market “skepticism over AI’s payoff is dissipating” as major tech firms prove they can successfully monetize their new tools.
Ultimately, they see the AI boom actively lifting U.S. corporate earnings, making equities an attractive play even in a higher-rate environment.
Upcoming Economic Data
Here’s what investors will be keeping an eye on Thursday.
- Initial jobless claims for the week ending April 25, the first quarter employment cost index, and GDP data, along with headline and core PCE index data, will all be released by 8:30 a.m. ET.
- April’s Chicago Business Barometer (PMI) will be released by 9:45 a.m., and February’s U.S. leading economic indicators data will be out by 10:00 a.m. ET.
Commodities, Crypto, And Global Equity Markets
Crude oil futures were trading higher in the early New York session by 0.91% to hover around $107.85 per barrel.
Gold Spot US Dollar rose 1.63% to hover around $4,617.99 per ounce. Its last record high stood at $5,595.46 per ounce. The U.S. Dollar Index spot was 0.14% lower at the 98.8250 level.
Meanwhile, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) was trading 1.22% lower at $76,083.80 per coin, as per the last 24 hours.
Asian markets closed lower on Thursday, as South Korea’s Kospi, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng, Australia’s ASX 200, China’s CSI 300, India’s Nifty 50, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 indices fell. European markets were also mostly lower in early trade.
Image Via Shutterstock
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